1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to stepwise convertible tricycle toy vehicle which allows controlled and gradual introduction of an infant to a self propelled, self guided mode of operation. The toy is useful as a passive means of conveyance of the infant occupant from the time the infant can hold his or her head upright, and as the infant grows, the toy is converted to challenge the infant to participate in its propulsion, guidance, and then its braking processes. Eventually, from a passive occupant, the infant becomes an equal partner and, finally, the sole safe driver of this toy vehicle.
2. Description of Prior Act
In today's faster moving society there exists a desire to accelerate and enhance the various stages of child development, both mentally and physically. It is desirable to do so safely in a controlled manner. Many toys which provide mental stimulation and challenge children's mental capacities have been developed. However, it appears that toys which challenge the child to develop coordination skills and gain control of the motor actions at an earlier age are lacking. Vehicles used to transport infants are of passive type and the infant is not challenged to participate in the propulsion or guidance thereof. Tricycles and pedal cars become useful only after the infant fully develops coordination skills and adequate size and strength to allow infant's feet to reach the pedals and propel the vehicles.
Thus, the existing vehicles are either propelled and guided by others while the infant is compelled to remain a passive occupant, or are of the type which require full development of mental and physical capacities to become an active independent and unassisted driver thereof.
In most cases, the abrupt transition process from a passive occupant to an unassisted driver takes place with a minimum of training. The child, anxious to use the new self propelled toy, is concentrating on making it go. The parents rejoice in the child's progress and forget to teach the child how to stop the vehicle. Articles have been written in toy magazines describing tricycles as unsafe toys lacking a braking mechanism. Such is not the case. It is not the lack of a braking mechanism which results in accidents when children fail to bring the tricycle to a stop, it is the lack of training in the use of the built in braking mechanism. The braking mechanism is the reversal of the rotation of the pedals, which stops the front wheel, thereby effectively stopping the tricycle. Most children, and many parents interviewed, are not even aware of this most important safety feature because no one has trained them when they were abruptly transferred from a parent propelled vehicle to the tricycle.
The stepwise convertible tricycle toy will overcome the unsafe operation of the conventional tricycles--the child's inability to stop the forward motion of the tricycle with a braking mechanism due to lack of proper instruction. With the stepwise convertible tricycle toy, the child will learn to turn the pedals in backwards direction when the supervising person switches the direction of travel from forward to backward by using the push and guide handle. This will teach the child how to use the built-in braking mechanism of turning the pedals backwards, a skill which is not developed with conventional tricycles.
In addition to the proper training to use the braking mechanism described above, the stepwise convertible tricycle toy can be equipped with a child proof parking brake means attached to the rear axle assembly means, allowing the parking of the stepwise convertible tricycle toy on an inclined surface, with the child safely held by a seat belt and the restraining means, and also allowing parking or storage of the stepwise convertible tricycle toy with the child proof parking brake which will prevent the child from using the toy unsupervised.
The existing vehicles are of time limited use because children outgrow the passive vehicle at about 20 months of age, and it becomes necessary to acquire the self propelled vehicle which puts a burden on families of limited means, and with limited storage space, to purchase and accommodate the multiple vehicles. This need, however, has been addressed to some degree by attempts to devise combination vehicles none of which have been commercially successful due to their complexity.
Therefore, a need has existed to provide a vehicle which will allow the infant to gradually become a participant in the propulsion and guidance processes which, under lesser and lesser degree of control, results in accelerated and enhanced development of mental and physical skills. Instead of an abrupt transfer from a fully controlled to a fully independent self propelled, self guided vehicle, which is frightening to both the infant and the parents, who for safety's sake may be delaying the transfer, this invention provides a means of gradual safe stepwise reduction of control, as each child develops at his or her own pace without endangering the child by allowing fully independent control of a vehicle, and without restricting and delaying the transition process. As each step is taken in the process described below, it can be reversed without subjecting the child to danger if the child was not ready for it. All tricycle enhancements which form the whole of this invention can be detached or attached by unskilled persons using only the basic tools.